Having a business checking account is a must for small businesses. That’s because business bank accounts allow you to separate your business expenses from your personal ones, prepare for taxes more easily, and establish your business’ financial presence.
The best business checking accounts for small businesses have low or no fees, integrates with business tools, and offer access to online and/or mobile banking. Access to a wide number of in-network ATMs and accounts that pay interest are also a big plus.
The Money Ninja looked at some of the largest banks in the country, along with a few big online banks and notable regional banks, and compared their business checking accounts. Here are our top checking accounts for small businesses.
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8 Best Business Checking Accounts
If you’re looking for the best checking account by category, here’s the quick run-down of the best checking account for:
- Lowest Fees: Novo Business Checking ($40 bonus)
- Biggest Sign-Up Bonus: Chase Business Complete Banking℠ ($500 bonus)
- Highest Interest Rate: Bluevine Business Checking (2.00% APY)
Below is our list of the Top 8 business checking accounts overall.
1. Novo Business Checking ($40 Bonus)
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ (5.0/5.0)
Minimum Opening Deposit = $50
Monthly Fee = $0
APY = N/A
Domestic Wire (Incoming) = No fee
Domestic Wire (Outgoing) = N/A
International ACH (Incoming) = No fee
The Money Ninja awarded the Novo Business Checking Account the best business checking account and the number one choice for sole proprietors, independent contractors, and small business owners.
It’s a free business checking account that offers unlimited fee-free transactions, unlimited invoicing and bill pay (including free paper checks), and integrates with popular business tools like QuickBooks, Stripe, Shopify, and Xero.
Currently, you can get a $40 bonus when you open a free Novo account using the link below and fund your account $100 or more within 30 days of account opening.
2. Chase Business Complete Banking℠ ($500 Bonus)
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2 (4.5/5.0)
Minimum Opening Deposit = $0
Monthly Fee = $15 (waived with $2,000 balance or other ways to waive)
APY = N/A
Domestic Wire (Incoming) = No fee
Domestic Wire (Outgoing) = $25
International ACH (Incoming) = No fee
Chase Business Complete Banking is one of the business checking accounts we use here at The Money Ninja and right now you can earn up to a $500 welcome bonus when you open a new Chase Business Complete Checking account with qualifying activities.
This bank account is designed for small businesses, offering unlimited Chase ATM and debit card transactions, and up to 20 teller and paper transactions per month.
There’s a $5,000 limit on cash deposits per statement cycle. It’s not a problem if you have an online business like me where most account receivables are electronic payments, but cash heavy operations should look for other alternatives.
3. U.S. Bank Business Checking ($750 Bonus)
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2 (4.5/5.0)
Minimum Opening Deposit = $100
Monthly Fee = $0 (for Silver Checking Account Package)
APY = N/A
Domestic Wire (Incoming) = $14
Domestic Wire (Outgoing) = $40
International ACH (Incoming) = No fee
U.S. Bank Business Checking offers one of the best bonuses for new business customers. You’ll get up to $750 when you open a business checking account and deposit money into your new account:
- Earn a $500 bonus for making a deposit of at least $5,000 in new money within 30 days of account opening and maintaining the balance until the 60th day of account opening
- Earn a $750 bonus for making a deposit of at least $15,000 in new money within 30 days of account opening and maintaining the balance until the 60th day of account opening
This account comes in several package types, with the best value being the Silver Business Checking Account Package as it comes with $0 monthly maintenance fee and up to 125 free transactions per month. So if you’re a new or small business, this checking account may be a good fit for you.
Note that U.S. Bank domestic wires cost a little more than other competitors listed here, so consider other alternatives if you conduct a lot of bank wire transfers (especially outgoing ones).
This business checking account is now available for businesses nationwide (it was previously available only in select states with physical U.S. Bank branches).
4. Axos Business Checking ($200 Bonus)
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2 (4.5/5.0)
Minimum Opening Deposit = $0
Monthly Fee = $0
APY = N/A
Domestic Wire (Incoming) = No fee
Domestic Wire (Outgoing) = 2 wire fee reimbursement monthly (otherwise $15)
International ACH (Incoming) = No fee
Axos Basic Business Checking is meant for small business owners with modest checking needs. This business account is compatible with Quickbooks and features:
- No initial deposit requirement
- No minimum balance requirement
- No monthly maintenance fees
- Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements
New business owners will get a $200 welcome bonus when they open an account while existing businesses (businesses opened before June 1, 2020) will get a $100 bonus instead.
5. Live Oak Bank Checking + Savings ($300 Bonus)
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2 (4.5/5.0)
Minimum Opening Deposit = $0
Monthly Fee = $0
APY = 4.00% (savings account)
Domestic Wire (Incoming) = No fee
Domestic Wire (Outgoing) = $19
International ACH (Incoming) = No fee
As the top SBA lender in the nation, Live Oak Bank is dedicated to helping small business owners grow. Their business checking and savings accounts are proof of this.
The checking account lets you take payment via PayPal, Stripe, Square, and Venmo while the savings account earns an exceptional rate of 4.00% APY. That’s the best rate I’ve seen for a business savings account. Both accounts also have no monthly maintenance fees.
And for a limited time, get a $300 bonus when you open these two banking accounts and complete qualifying activities.
6. American Express® Business Checking (30,000 Bonus Points)
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2 (4.5/5.0)
Minimum Opening Deposit = $0
Monthly Fee = $0
APY = 1.30%
Domestic Wire (Incoming) = No fee
Domestic Wire (Outgoing) = $20
International ACH (Incoming) = No fee
The American Express Business Checking account offers the third highest APY for a business checking account at 1.30% and makes it an ideal place to hold your company cash.
In addition to 24/7 support from their excellent team of specialists, there are no monthly maintenance fees and the following processing services are no-fee as well:
- Monthly account maintenance
- Account opening
- Additional accounts
- Mobile deposit capture
- E-checks
- Outgoing and incoming returns
- Non-sufficient funds
- Stop pay
- Billing inquiry
- Duplicate credit/debit received
- Admin processing
- Statement copy
- Physical checks processing
Currently, you can get 30,000 Membership Rewards® points that’s worth at least $300 when you open an account with qualifying activities.
7. Bluevine Business Checking (2.00% APY)
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2 (4.5/5.0)
Minimum Opening Deposit = $0
Monthly Fee = $0
APY = 2.00%
Domestic Wire (Incoming) = No fee
Domestic Wire (Outgoing) = $15
International ACH (Incoming) = No fee
If you want to earn interest on your business cash flow, look no further than the Bluevine Business Checking account. It offers the second highest APY available for a business bank account, earning 2.00% APY up to and including $100,000.
To earn the 2.00% interest on your account balance, you have to meet one of the following requirements:
- Spend at least $500 with your Bluevine business debit card.
- Receive at least $2,500 of deposits into your Bluevine business checking account (e.g. ACH transfer, wire transfer, mobile check deposit or directly from your payment processor).
This interest-earning account also features unlimited fee-free transactions, no monthly fees, no minimum opening deposit amount, and no minimum balance requirements.
8. Relay
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2 (4.5/5.0)
Minimum Opening Deposit = $0
Monthly Fee = $0
APY = 0%
Domestic Wire (Incoming) = No fee
Domestic Wire (Outgoing) = $5
International ACH (Incoming) = No fee
Relay is a no-fee, online banking and money management platform that’s perfect for small teams.
One of Relay’s best feature is the ability to open up to 20 individual business checking accounts and issue 50 Mastercard debit cards to your team.
Combine this with their intuitive reporting options, it allows you to get powerful insights into your operating expenses, cash flow, and accounts payable.
Ranking Business Checking Accounts
While business checking accounts work the same way as personal checking accounts, there are factors that are of higher importance for business owners. These were the considerations we used to rank the business accounts.
- Minimum Opening Deposit: The amount that you’re required to deposit when you open a business checking account. This should be preferably zero or some low amount.
- Monthly Fees: The fee the bank charges to maintain your account. Just like you, we hate monthly service fees so we only consider free business bank accounts or ones that charge a low monthly fee that can be waived.
- APY: While not the most important factor when deciding which business bank account is best for you, it’s a bonus if an account offers interest.
- Wire Fees: Method of sending money electronically to someone at another bank through a service such as SWIFT or the Federal Reserve Wire Network. Wire transfers are usually processed the same day, but are more costly than ACH transfers (though ACH transfers can take longer).
- International ACH Fees: The fees incurred when you send or receive ACH from another country. This isn’t important if the majority of your transactions are domestic, but something to consider if you conduct business with international companies.
- Transaction Limits: Banks normally place a monthly limit on the number of transactions a business can make with its account, including electronic transactions, fund transfers, and depositing checks. Exceeding the transaction limit in a given month will incur a small fee for each additional transaction you make. Make sure you choose an account that can accommodate your average transaction volume.
- Cash Deposit Limit: The amount of cash you’re allowed to deposit into your account for free each period. Like transaction limits, you’ll face a small fee for each additional cash deposit you make beyond the allocated amount.
- ATM Access: Generally, your bank won’t charge an ATM fee when you use a bank-branded machine. However, if you use an ATM machine outside of their network, you’ll likely get charged a fee. This could include all types of transactions like deposits, withdrawals, and balance inquiries. Check to see if the business checking account offers any ATM fee reimbursements.
- Additional Fees: Some other fees you may come across with business checking accounts are nonsufficient funds fees (NSF), overdraft fees, and stop payment fees.
- Included Tools: The best business checking accounts feature tools to make life easier. Mobile banking and mobile check deposit should be the minimum standard, but other options such as the ability to import bank transactions to your accounting software (Quickbooks, Zoho Books, FreshBooks) would save a lot of the manual process. Other time-saving tools include electronic invoicing and online bill pay.
Business Bank Accounts FAQs
Yes you can. You’d be surprise that you may already have a business. Do you sell things on eBay, have a side hustle, or blog online? Then you have a business and you’re able to open a business bank account.
Many small businesses are run by sole proprietors, which is a fancy way of saying the business is owned by one person. This is the classic definition of being self-employed.
I strongly recommend it. While it’s technically okay to use your personal bank account for a small business (sole proprietor or single-member LLC), mixing personal and business transactions can be a nightmare to shift through and will be difficult to manage if you’re ever audited.
Put it this way – there’s no harm in getting one and there isn’t a good reason not to open a business checking account.
Novo is the best business checking account, charging little to no fees for the majority of their services while offering integration with many third-party software. It’s the top-ranked choice for sole proprietors and small businesses.
It makes sense if you have a sizeable amount of cash just sitting in a business checking account and the account doesn’t earn interest. Put your money to work and let it accrue interest!
The Bottom Line
I opened all the business checking accounts listed here in order to take them on a test drive. They’re all great, but I find myself primarily using Novo and Chase Complete Banking for my day-to-day business transactions and American Express Business Checking to stash my idle cash.
There are so many checking accounts for businesses these days and that’s a good thing. More competition gives you more choices and forces banks to improve their product to stand out from the rest.
Whether you’re looking for a local, regional, or national bank for your business banking needs, it’s absolutely critical to look at the features that are important to you and compare what each bank offers for that.
For instance, if your business receives a lot of wire transfers, than you’d certainly want to consider how much banks charge for incoming and outgoing wire transfer fees.
On the other hand, if your business has a bunch of money sitting around, you’d want to looking for a business checking account that offers a high APY rate.